Wake up! Hey don't look at me. I didn't invent that statement. God did. He said it numerous times throughout the letter He wrote to us being the bible. In particular He says it in Isaiah 52. He is speaking to His followers, disciples. He is telling us to wake up and be aware. Be prepared.
Here is another way to think about it. God has provided through His Son, Jesus Christ, everything we need to LIVE. We must be aware of not only everything He has provided, but also how to appropriate for our own lives what He has given.
I am reminded of a very strong eternal statement made by our saviour on the cross. Just before he gave his last breath he said "it is finished". Now when he said it is finished I believe he meant exactly that. He had completed the work. He had conquered the last enemy, death. Now everything God wanted to give to us could be ours and nothing can keep us from it. Wake up and begin to see not only all that God made possible but begin believing it for yourself. Begin to know once again the splendor and strength that is yours. Clothe yourself with these tremendous truths. Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world. Remember God chose us to be His own.
Wake up and see His great provision for life. Wake up and hear His Words of hope and faith.

Most likely all of us know that our minds are where we fight the major battles in life. It is not so much in other things. We have to deal with our thoughts constantly. It is of no surprise then that the Word of God tells us so much about thoughts. One important conclusion that we can come to as we read God's Word is the truth that our minds need renewing. We are in great need of seeing (and thinking) like God does. It takes us out of being defeated or depressed and many other things that effect us daily in life. We can change the way we think to be in agreement with the victorious mindset of the Lord. It is a process and will take time. But we can do it one day at a time.
There is one story where Jesus is traveling and comes into a new area where there is a man that is demon possessed who terrorized the region he lived in. This man is pretty much crazy and violent. His mind is way off. Much further than most if not all of us. As Jesus comes into this picture he confronts the legion of demons in this man and casts them out. The result is that this man is sitting at the feet of Jesus in his RIGHT mind! And all the people that came near were afraid! It is amazing to me that the same people that were terrorized by this man are now afraid because he is in his right mind! Maybe getting in our right mind, God's mind, thoughts, ways, will also cause the enemy of our minds to be afraid. Very afraid!!
Let God's Word wash your mind, thoughts, and all that you are.

Little by little. That is such a strong principle in life. Things change for the good or the bad little by little. When a crisis or problem arises so many times we wonder how we got to that point. The answer is little by little. It happens in relationships, personal growth, personal destruction, well you get the idea.
you see there is strong principle that the Lord has established for our lives. We are to live by this principle if we want to see true lasting growth. As a matter of fact He teaches us through the Israelites that even when He promised them all the riches and blessings of the promised land that the Lord put a major condition on it. You guessed it! Little by little they would possess the land. Not all at once but bit by bit, battle by battle. They were overwhelmed as they saw the strong fortified cities and strong peoples that they would have to confront. But God didn't ask them to take it all at once. That was too much.
Even though we want all that God has for us it is important that we don't try to get it all in a day. That is how we burn out spiritually so many times. We want to rest in the blessings without breaking a sweat. It doesn't work. We are going to have to fight for all He has prepared.
Lay your hands on eternal life! Go after it. Make an effort to receive by entering into the battles of life.
Our souls are in need of all God has for us. He wants us to have it. But we need to work in conjunction with His power little by little taking possession of it all. So start today. Add something to your life that little by little will be seen one day.

I saw a couple of skits that I thought were worth watching so here are the links. Yes I cried and laughed. They were that good.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXut0HxncvY God's Chisel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5Pju_bjlWo Coffee for Dad

We Are Able

We are able. That is what Caleb said to the nation of Israel upon returning from an exploratory trip to see first hand what God wanted Israel to have. With the exception of Joshua, the other 10 princes had a different opinion. You see they were only able to see who they were and what they were capable of doing. They left God out of the equation.
Don't we do that often in our lives. Leave God out of the equation. We work and do in our own ability. It is only when we see an impossible task that we consider the Lord in the situation or we attempt to include Him. But in general we base our future on our ability.
If we could only understand a simple truth. Well actually several simple truths. But here is the first one. God doesn't show us what He doesn't want us to have! And along with that if He wants us to have it then the ability to have it does not lie in our strength.
That is what Caleb understood. He knew that whatever battles or difficulties they would encounter would be met because God was giving them all they saw. The Lord didn't tell them in Numbers 13 to go check out the promised future(land, benefits, goodness, etc.) that He had provided to see if they could take it. He already gave it to them! He just wanted them to taste and see!
We are able. Listen to that phrase with the understanding that it is we with God! Not just in our power but in His. We are able to conquer. We are able to be set free. We are able to succeed. Be set free, change, have victory over sin, live in peace and joy, etc.............
Stop counting on yourself and thinking it is up to you. Start trusting in what God has provided and enter the battlefield to take possession of all He has prepared for you. It is time to acknowledge that we are able!

Here is a thought: Why did Jesus walk on the water? He could have gone in the boat with the disciples. There doesn’t seem to be any great spiritual meaning to Him walking on water except to catch up with the disciples and go across. Why didn’t He just get translated? The result of Him walking on water was Peter walking on water! Such a frivolous adventure. But what an awesome and unforgettable experience Peter had!! Matthew 14:22-31

Not everything Jesus did can fit into our box of religion. He showed us the Father and His glory. Maybe with all of this He showed us that God cares about more than our basic existence. He cares about our enjoying life further than obligation will allow us to live. It is alright to enjoy life beyond the just getting by mode. Pleasure is part of life! Walk on water! Lighten up a little!

We need fresh faith. We need to unclutter our Christian past and awaken a new and fresh faith in our hearts. In the story about the Centurion that comes to Jesus for his servant to be healed the Lord proclaims that this man had great faith. This man was not familiar with the Jewish religion. He was a Roman soldier. But he grasped the idea that Jesus was a man under authority from Heaven. Whatever Jesus said would be dispatched and fully backed by the Father in Heaven. He actually said to Jesus something that was amazing. He said, 'just say the word and my servant will be healed'.

He came with a simple faith that believed Jesus' word. This is the faith we need to have. Uncluttered by all the reasons that it won't work, or by circumstances that negate the remote possibility of God moving on our behalf. A faith that trusts what the word of God says.
Now there is an important note that I see in this story. The Centurion was asking for Jesus to say a word for it to happen. He wanted to hear Jesus say it right then. Something that was spoken for that moment and not the past or future. We know the word of God is alive and powerful. But don't we need the Lord to speak to us today for our situation. Not something from the past. But a now word.

We can have that present word in our lives today. All we need to do is ask Him for it and listen. I believe the bible has a word for every situation. We simply need to open our spiritual ears and listen. Spend time with the Lord by reading His word or praying. The Holy Spirit will speak to us. He will quicken a word and make it alive for our present need. He will bring life where there is death. Let Him speak to you. Then believe what He says. Use fresh faith. Don't let anything in your past interfere with trusting Him NOW!